In zones 6 through 8, it remains evergreen most of the year. . Creeping thyme (also known as mother of thyme or wild thyme) is a creeping, woody-stemmed perennial that is a favorite plant to use for a low-maintenance ground cover serving as a filler between garden stepping stones. It reaches 6-inches in height and spreads to 24-inches wide. Lamium maculatum stays relatively short, with the typical cultivar standing less than a foot tall. Keep it in a shady spot, especially under trees and shrubs. However, sweet woodruff can be a good ground cover choice for dry shade, such as in areas under big trees. Ground cover plants are the perfect solution for a variety of landscaping issues. Most of my dl have been in the ground at least 6 months, so I'm guessing they are well established enough for a ground cover. It does best in cooler summer weather and prefers full sun to part shade. When planted in groups, heuchera works well as a ground cover or along garden edging. Any solid green leaves should be snipped out, otherwise, the plant will eventually lose the variegated leaves and become all green. Its a native to wooded areas and stream banks of the Appalachian Mountains, and easy to control. Spotted dead nettles are valued as perennial ground covers for the shade that will spread and fill in a patch of ground that might otherwise remain bare (except for weeds). To plant creeping juniper on a grassy slope, get rid of the grass, then lay down landscape fabric along the slope. Here are our top 15 ground covers for shaded areas. The nepeta genus includes roughly 250 species. It is a woodland plant that requires good drainage and shade. Its starry white flowers appear late in the season at a time when many other perennials are finished blooming, making it an important food source for pollinators. This is a highly invasive plant but it's also popular for growing on huge swaths of areas that need ground cover and won't encroach on another's property. Read more about purple dead nettle and henbit. Creeping Phlox. They can spread across bare ground, suppressing weeds and dust, preventing erosion, decreasing water evaporation, and adding color. It's also used for ground cover to stop erosion because its tough roots hold soil in place. Liverleaf (Anemone americana, formerly classified as Hepatica americana) is a perennial wildflower native to North America. These plants spread out, and you can keep them under control by pruning, too. This ground cover is a late riser, making it ideal for covering up the spent foliage of spring flowering bulbs. Being creepersand having a tendency to spread, these classic cottage-garden plants are popular flowering ground covers. On top of all that, with proper care the plant can last 5 to 6 years, during which time you can harvest your own fresh thyme. Physalis. But they are not grasses, and are instead herbaceous floweringperennial plantsin the asparagus family. She founded Gaia's Farm and Gardens,aworking sustainable permaculture farm, and writes for Gaia Grows, a local newspaper column. Plant liriope any time for quick growth and spreading. It grows low to the ground, making it a good alternative to grass in just about any climate. which is great for using as a ground cover in large fields and gardens. Spectacular as a ground cover in the shade garden, Lamium maculatum (Spotted Dead Nettle) is a perennial plant whose appearance is unlike other perennial ground covers. In shade, its OK if the soil dries out now and then. It is also ideal for rock gardens, border edges, and even containers besides being an excellent choice for an ornamental ground cover. Lamium covers well and adds colorful flowers, foliage and texture. Push the bare part of the branch into the soil at the desired location and water. Arricca Elin SanSone has written about health and lifestyle topics for Prevention, Country Living, Woman's Day, and more. Bright pink, purple or white flowers are a bonus that draws in bumblebees from mid-spring to early summer. This native ground cover is as useful as it is pretty, acting as the larval host of the Pipevine Swallowtail butterfly and as a weed suppressing ground cover. A critical bit of deadnettle plant info to be aware of, however, is . Although strawberry begonia is winter hardy in USDA Zones 7 through 9, some people in Zone 6b have reportedly had luck with it overwintering, too. North Carolina State Extension Gardener Plant Toolbox. Evergreen ground covers, such as creeping juniper, require little care. Locate where the runners have rooted themselves into the ground. Fast growing and a good all round plant for beneath trees you get a ground cover with good foliage and the added attraction of flowers. But beware: This hardy opportunist, if left unchecked, can become unsightly and sometimes invasive. Once dense, it can be quite attractive, but you will need to corral it or you'll have a sea of ruellia. If the hill is big, remove the grass in stages so as not to take unnecessary chances with erosion. This shrub flowers from May to July with white flowers, and grows to a maximum height of about 9 inches. White Nancy jparkers USDA Zones:3-9 See more ideas about plants, shade plants, shade garden. Though many annual flowers can be used for ground coverings, it can be laborious to replant large swaths of coverings yearly. Here are four options that we've grown in various areas around the . Though pruning is not necessary, hostas will yellow and die back so trimming dead foliage can look better, especially in a small area. .css-1byi7p4{-webkit-text-decoration:none;text-decoration:none;text-decoration-thickness:0.0625rem;text-decoration-color:#125C68;text-underline-offset:0.25rem;color:#fff;-webkit-transition:background 0.3s ease-in-out,color 0.3s ease-in-out;transition:background 0.3s ease-in-out,color 0.3s ease-in-out;display:inline-block;background-color:#000000;border-radius:0.125rem;font-family:NeutraDisplay,Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif;font-size:0.79054rem;line-height:1;font-weight:bold;height:unset;letter-spacing:0.05rem;padding:0.6rem 1rem;text-transform:uppercase;width:auto;}.css-1byi7p4:hover{color:#000;text-decoration-color:#595959;background-color:#53c2be;}.css-1byi7p4:focus-visible{outline-color:body-cta-btn-link-focus;}SHOP LILY OF THE VALLEY. Our wide range of perennial groundcovers are ideal for those spots in the garden where grass isn't wantedon banks, under trees or across large areas of the border. Do spotted dead nettle attract butterflies? It's also toxic to humans and pets. Mature plants that have gotten "leggy" should be cut down to just above the ground, which then will grow back into a bushy, compact plant. With full sun, this green herb will grow small flowers in summer, attracting plenty of pollinators. Install the plants in an acidic, well-drained, loamy soil. Pollinating bees and butterflies delight in its bright golden yellow, daisy-like flowers that appear from late spring into early summer. The 25 low-maintenance ground cover plants in this list are vigorous (some more than others) but manageable, so they will fill in empty spaces without growing out-of-control. Instead, it keeps its leathery dark green leaves in nearly the same condition year round. Each plant takes on a green fountain-like appearance: Long, lush shoots of chartreuse foliage sprout up from the soil, then softly twist and tangle for full coverage wherever planted. Prepare a bed on the sandy, well-drained soil under 6-12 inches depth and plant the seedlings 18 inches apart in the late afternoon. They love harsh conditions, including heat, full sun, low water, and even rugged terrain or rocky soil. With very attractive foliage and either white or pink flowers, Lamium maculatum makes an excellent ground cover plant for a shaded position. BUY IT ($18) Jill King/EyeEm/Getty Images. If you live in USDA Zones 3 through 9 and have a low spot where grass struggles because its too wet, try planting golden groundsel there instead. It prefers moderate climates but is able to withstand full sun and drought-like conditions. There are more native species of sedge than any other plant in North America, and many make fine ground covers for shade. Despite its vigorous growth, it's not considered invasive. It likes full sun, but can tolerate part shade. high and can spread out 2 feet (61 cm.) The foliage is evergreen and the 3-inch-high plant trails or spreads, favoring gravel and other sunny, dry conditions in zones 5 through 9. Creeping Raspberry is a wonderful and attractive ground cover that is naturally hardy, resilient, and adaptable. Plant them with an assortment of other flowering plants in a container garden to have sitting on your porch and lanai, or they trail beautifully from a hanging basket. Not picky, spotted Dead Nettles do just fine in average, well-drained soil. Mow it down once in late winter and watch the fresh green growth fill right back in. Alyssum is an annual ground cover that grows very well from direct sow seeding once temperatures have reached 65 to 70 degrees. They may be plain green, but they are usually spotted or banded in silver-gray. Photo: Stan Shebs, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons, 25 Plants That Survive With or Without You, 14 of the Best Plants for Your Drought-Tolerant Garden, 10 Grass-Free Alternatives to a Traditional Lawn, Bad Neighbors: 11 Plant Pairs Never to Grow Side by Side. A variety of cultivars are available, including Juniperus horizontalis'Blue Rug.'. Just like the name implies, the fuzzy silver leaves resemble lamb's ears. Dead nettle, also known as Lamium, is a low-growing perennial with silver-splashed leaves and bursts of purple, pink, or white flowers that pop up in spring and early summer. Look for the distinctive crook at the top of the stem to identify this species. So long as the site affords full sun and good drainage, creeping phlox requires next to nothing in the way of care. Ground cover plants play an important role in the forest garden, protecting the soil, providing refuge for wildlife at ground layer, preventing unwanted plants from establishing and can provide some food such as berries or leaves. Depending on the variety, you can expect this ground cover to behave as a creeper, or a low-mounded perennial, with small flowers that resemble snapdragons blooming in summer. 1. This fast-growing annual looks gorgeous tumbling over rock walls or along the edges of walkways. Remove any obviously rotting plants, but it grows so fast you likely won't even have to replace the plant. There is also a pink flowering form. Another bonus is that it is common and considered one of the cheapest ground covering plants. Spotted dead nettles are a great plant to put in containers or hanging baskets. nettles (Lamium maculatum) constitute the majority of commercially available varieties. This easy-to-grow plant spreads and produces numerous offspring from seed. Equally at home hanging from a planter or covering a hillside, Lysimachia (more commonly known as creeping Jenny) is a plant admired for its trailing branches. In fact, they are one of the best perennials for shade. It is mainly grown for beautiful berries that succeed the blossoms over green leaves. Lamium needs shade and a fertile, moist but well-draining soil. There are also several cultivars (all cold-hardy to at least zone 4, most 3 to 12 inches tall, and all wanting the sun/soil conditions of the species plant) of L.maculatum, including: While dead nettle plants areflowering perennials,stinging nettles, by contrast,arenoxious weeds(but edible when properly prepared). Pachysandra are aggressive and fast-spreading coverings that grow underground with runners. You will have to experiment to arrive at the right balance between giving it enough water to keep it alive and giving it so much that it becomes invasive. Bunchberry is a shade-loving deciduous shrub native to northern portions of North America. Key Dead-nettle facts Name - Lamium maculatum Family - Lamiaceae Type - perennial Height - 8 to 12 inches (20 to 30 cm) Exposure - full sun to shade Soil - rich and well drained Foliage - deciduous Its brittle, fragile stems help keep it from becoming aggressively invasive and also allow bulbs and other perennials to penetrate its foliage. Planted along sloped pieces of land, it can neaten up the area while providing ground covering. Spread: Slow to medium growth rate; spreads via stolons to a height of 10 inches. Plant bugleweed in the late spring or early summer and it will quickly spread runners (stolons) that can form a dense mat to fill large and shady areas, especially where you need erosion control. There are almost endless varieties of hostas that will fit your needs, many with variegated leaves and spikey short-lived and unremarkable flowers.

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